dj bean

Sorting through the Savard saga

It's tough to tell which installment of the "making sense of the Marc Savard situation" this may be, because quite frankly, there have been so many developments or rumors surrounding the center since the summer that one couldn't be blamed for losing count. Such is the nature with these things.

Even so, this week has served as a reminder to all that until Savard, currently out with post-concussion syndrome symptoms, is spotted on the ice -- even in a practice jersey -- chatter is sure to surround the veteran pivot.

First were the trade rumors. If a player was speculated to be on the move to Boston, fans were trained over the summer to assume Savard would go in the deal. As it became clearer that Savard would likely stay in Boston, so too emerged the news that he was "hurt" by the idea of the Bruins shopping or taking calls on him.

Then came the not-so-news that the NHL was iffy about the seven-year contract extension he signed back in December. Because the deal circumvented the salary cap, the possibly existed that Savard's $28.5 million pact could be voided. In the end, the agreement between the NHLPA and the league led to the end of the investigation.

Throughout the summer, the team was generally mum on Savard. When his name came up in conference calls or in media scrums, it yielded the standard answer that teams don't address trade rumors each time. Chiarelli initially intimated that Savard wouldn't be at the team's golf tournament because he had loose ends to tie up back at home in Ottawa. When the contract investigation came to light, the GM notified the media that it had been going on since the deal's signing and that the team was cooperating with the league.

Nothing, however, was more open-and-shut than Chiarelli's rejection of a Tuesday night report citing a team source as saying Savard "could" be out for the season and that his situation with the team was "complex." That same night, Chiarelli told season ticket holders that the center would be back "in short order." That wasn't the end of the GM's talk regarding the center that night though, as he spoke to clarify his point shortly after.

“It’s not normally my practice to respond to stories like that unless I feel like it’s completely contradictory to what I said, which is the case here,” Chiarelli said. “We issued that statement saying that everything is the same as it was when we started the camp with Marc, and when there’s a change, I’ll be the one to update [the media] and there has been no change. The notion that he’s going to miss the whole year and [that] it’s this complex issue frankly is far from the truth."

Though uncertainty remains, the truest statement that has come from the past week is one that has been said by everybody, from players to talk show hosts and everyone in between: projecting anything when a concussion is involved is a tricky game. The Bruins obviously would not have let a man they planned on having on the books for the next seven years play if they were concerned it could cause him long-term damage.

Now that his trade value is nonexistent, it's quite clear that Savard is in the Bruins' plans, but for when? After all, Savard doesn't need to miss the season for his PCS symptoms to affect the Bruins.

"Any time missed from camp for Savvy will have to be made up from pure conditioning," Chiarelli said last Friday after the team completed fitness testing.

Now, without trying to speculate, here is what we do know about the situation: Savard needs to get both cleared to work out and then get ready for hopefully a long season of hockey (for what it's worth, both Milan Lucic and Chiarelli said he was training harder than ever in the offseason). This could mean that, at least to begin the season, the Bruins might be looking at David Krejci as their top center and potentially Zach Hamill as the third-line pivot.

Tyler Seguin has seen time at both wings and at center so far in training camp and the preseason, but it's hard not to think he doesn't begin the season to the left of Patrice Bergeron on the second line, with Mark Recchi on the other wing. Though Seguin figures to ultimately be a franchise center, nobody loses in this scenario. Seguin himself has expressed a willingness to play either position, and if he were to start at center with the city expecting him to make up Savard's production, the pressure of being a top pick would end up playing second fiddle to the pressure of replacing a superstar.

As for Hamill, he may not be the young right-handed center that's gotten all the attention this summer, but it might be interesting to see what he can do if called upon as a top-nine forward as the Bruins await Savard's return. Now 22 years of age, the eighth overall pick in the 2007 draft has ample AHL experience and says he's bulked up for this camp. The downside is that his 70 total points over two seasons of 65 or more games at Providence don't scream "Top 10 pick."

The moral of the story is that the Bruins are a significantly better offense with Savard, especially if he's setting up Nathan Horton. As was made very clear this week, it's anybody's guess as to when that will be, but the Bruins are far from a lost cause without him. The talent brought in hasn't changed, and the way he's going, Horton looks primed for a career year no matter who's centering him. That potential Seguin-Bergeron-Recchi line is just intriguing. There is every reason to expect bigger and better things from their offensive unit, even if they're forced to wait for their top center.

Until then, they, and everyone else in Boston, will wait. Such is the nature with these things.

Greg and Chris talk with Mike Reiss from ESPN Boston in hour 2 of NFL Sunday to discuss a variety of offseason happenings with the Pats and throughout the league. Greg and Chris also get into the NFL Draft and where Mariota and Winston will go.

Mike Reiss calls the guys to talk about the offseason news for the Pats. He talks about the Pats/Jets tampoering fiasco, free agency, where he sees Ridley and Connolly ending up, if the Patriots would be interested in Reggie Wayne and more.

In the first hour of the show, Greg and Chris discuss the news coming out of the owners' meetings this week and rule changes. Belichick's blow-up over the league not wanting to spend on endzone cameras was well documented and the guys react. They also talk about the Jets ridiculous tampering charges, free agents still lingering out there, where Stevan Ridley will land and the RB position in New England. Dickerson and Price briefly discuss the adventures of Tom Brady before being joined by WEEI.com's Mike Petraglia to talk all things Pats in the offseason.

Flannery joins Mut to break down the Isaiah Thomas trade to Boston and what it means for the Celtics this season and in the future. Paul also chats with Mut about the other deals that happened at the NBA's trading deadline

Mut, Tomase, and Bradford kick things off talking about Shane Victorino taking offense to people reading into some comments he made about trading for Cole Hamels. They also discuss Blake Swihart and how soon he could be up if Christian Vazquez starts the season on the DL.

Joe Kelly joined the Hot Stove show where he talked about being ready for his next spring training start after a biceps ailment forced him out of his last outing, he talks about his NCAA brackets and how teammate Wade Miley has a perfect bracket still.

Peter Chiarelli joined the Sunday Skate crew to talk about the Bruins playoff push heading into the final handful of games of the regular season. Chiarelli talked about avoiding some of the overly negative feedback he gets while realizing that the team does have real issues. He discusses what went down at the trade deadline and if he was happy with the outcome, Lucic having a down year and underperforming, the salary cap and if he considers it as big of an issue as it's been made out to be and what the future holds for the team.

It's a big hour #2 for the Sunday Skate dudes - they talk about the B's defenseman and what the future looks like at that position, with both moves the team can make and younger guys in the AHL. They also get into the Bruins philosophy on bringing guys up and sending them back down and how players deal with that. Finally, the boys are joined by Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli to discuss EVERYTHING.

The Sunday Skate crew gets the show going discussing the Bruins big, impressive victory over the NY Rangers yesterday. What can you take from that game? According to LB - Lyndon Byers - who called the guys from the road, not a lot. LB drops a dime on what was going on with the Rangers yesterday. DJ and Joe discuss Claude's lines and groupings and the importance of Ryan Spooner. They also get into Lucic, his contributions this year and if he can turn things around.

Wrestlemania was a trial run for Super Bowl 50. More Christian dog stuff. Superintendent in Chief William Gross of the BPD deals with some idiotic protesters after the fatal shooting in Roxbury on Friday night.

Shawn Thornton is now a member of the Panthers, who come to town tomorrow night. Thornton spoke about Claude Julien's control of the Bruins locker room, and his own team playing his former team on Tuesday night.